The Daily Dose/May 21, 2021
By Gaylon Kent
America’s Funniest Guy
Editor’s Note: Gaylon is working on a project and most elements of The Daily Dose – Leading Off, The Sunday Bottom 5, On This Date, Some Philosophy Crap, Trivia – are either on hiatus or running intermittently. Your full-service Daily Dose will return, probably later this spring, though perhaps in the summer.
Leading Off
Notes from around the human experience.
HEY BATTER, BATTER, SWING…AND MISS: Major league baseball (MLB, ML) is on track to have 22 no-hitters thrown this season. So far there have been six (really seven, as we shall see) thrown and there is some blather out there proclaiming the ML record for most no-hitters in a season is seven. This is false; the record is eight, done twice in 1884 and 1990.
Where In For Some Dry, Technical Matter, Aren’t We?: The discrepancy comes from what MLB defines as a no-hitter, currently when a pitcher throws nine innings or more and gives up zero hits. This is a lousy definition because not every major league game over the years has been scheduled for nine innings. For the past couple of seasons, doubleheaders have consisted of two seven-inning games and back before there were lights second games of doubleheaders were routinely – though not always – scheduled for seven innings, usually when teams had trains to catch.
We’re Here To Help: A better definition for a no-hitter would be a regulation, complete game where a team gets zero hits. A regulation game refers to the number of innings scheduled and a complete game goes (at least) the scheduled number of innings. Games that do not go the scheduled number of innings because of rain are known as called games and no-hitters in called games deservedly have their own, separate listing in the record book.
Dry, Technical Matter: Using the regulation, complete game definition there have been seven no-hitters thrown this year because Madison Baumgartner’s no-hitter was only scheduled for seven innings.
Those Zany Record Keepers: It also means the ML record for most no-hitters in a season is eight. It was first done in 1884 – an era commonly ignored nowadays – and again in 1990 and here’s where the fun begins because the ML record book published by the Elias Sports Bureau (ESB) says the record is seven while the Sporting News record book – no longer published – always said the record was eight.
Please Pass The Dry, Technical Matter: This is because the Sporting News included Andy Hawkins’ no-hitter, where the ESB does not. Those who don’t get invited to many parties will recall Hawkins, pitching for the Yankees, lost a no-hitter at Chicago and only pitched eight innings because the White Sox already led and didn’t require their final at-bat. The ESB ignores this one but the Sporting News does not – and we know you don’t, either – because it was a regulation, complete game.
The Bottom Line: The regulation, complete game criteria is more reasonable than the current nine-innings only rule. It would add a handful of no-hitters to the official list, including Ed Karger’s 1907 perfect game, the second game of a doubleheader that only was only scheduled for seven innings.
Today At The Site
Writing worth reading. Usually.
The Diary of a Nobody – Sparrow enjoys a day off. Today’s Diary.
A good day off…As yours truly likes to blab every five minutes, I get one day off between 60-hour work weeks and even project work is ignored on Thursdays now…Heck, it’s been so leisurely the past couple of Thursdays ol’ Sparrow couldn’t even be bothered with a solid Level I cleanings and only washing the dishes.
Some Philosophy Crap
The wisdom of the ages. Whatever.
Man lives in a circle, and when he has been all the way around, he might as well call it a day.
Heywood Braun
———
Click here for complimentary chapters of all of Gaylon’s books.
It’s easy reading on any device.
Columns, books, shopping lists, click here to get in on the laughs.
4Ever & Ever ($8.99) and monthly ($2.99) plans available.
